Transferring cycling policies
The benefits and barriers for the city state of Berlin
Master Thesis
Veronique Rietman | S2752301 v.a.j.rietman@student.rug.nl
Environmental and Infrastructure Planning
University of Groningen | Faculty of Spatial Sciences Supervisor: dr. C.W. Lamker
Date: 08/07/2020
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Colophon
Master thesis: MSc Environmental and Infrastructure Planning Title: Transferring cycling policies
Subtitle: The benefits and barriers for the city state of Berlin
Place: Groningen, the Netherlands
Date: 08/07/2020
Status: Final version
Author: V.A.J. Rietman
Student number: S2752301
Contact: v.a.j.rietman@student.rug.nl
Supervisor: Dr. C.W. Lamker
Second reader: K.V. Bandsma MSc
University: University of Groningen
Faculty: Faculty of Spatial Sciences
Front page images: Volksentscheid Fahrrad (2016). Der Entwurf des Berliner Radverkehrsgesetzes (BerRG). Berlin: Volksentscheid Fahrrad.
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Preface
Dear reader,
Hereby I present you my master thesis on the benefits and barriers of bicycle policy transfer for policymakers in Berlin. For me, this master thesis forms the final act for the master program Environmental and Infrastructure Planning at the University of Groningen.
Therewith, it marks the end of my six-year study period in Groningen.
During my study period, I have developed an interest in sustainable mobility and the means to accomplish this, both from a policy as well as a behavioural perspective. As I have lived for all my student life in Groningen, I was used to looking at sustainable mobility issues from a Dutch perspective. By going on an exchange for the last few months of my study period and writing my master thesis in Berlin I hoped to broaden my scope with regard to sustainable mobility.
In the end, I was not able to move to Berlin due to the outbreak of the corona virus. However, I am glad that I could continue my research on the same topic, as it allowed me to learn a lot about the differences in bicycle strategies between cities in the Netherlands and Berlin, about the barriers with regard to improving bicycle conditions in Berlin, and about the role that policy transfer plays for bicycle planning in Berlin. I hope that my thesis will broaden your view as well, especially for the readers used to the Dutch context. Furthermore, I hope that my thesis will offer useful insights and recommendations for policymakers in the field of bicycle planning, not only in Berlin but also in other cities.
I would like to express my gratitude to those without whom I could not have completed this thesis. First of all, I would like to thank my supervisor, dr. Christian Lamker, for providing constructive feedback on earlier versions of my thesis. His enthusiasm about my research topic motivated me to continue the process and keep improving myself. Moreover, his knowledge really helped me to gain a better understanding of the German (transport) context.
Furthermore, without the willingness of my interviewees to participate, I would not have been able to do this research. I am grateful that they were willing to share their opinion, experience, and knowledge with me. Despite their engagement in the developments that currently take place in Berlin with regard to the corona crisis, they made time to participate in this research.
Finally, I would like to thank my family and friends for supporting me during my study and the process of writing this research.
For now, I hope you enjoy reading my master thesis!
Veronique Rietman
Groningen, 8th of July 2020
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Abstract
Since the parliamentary elections of 2016, the bicycle is one of the core focus points of transport planning in Berlin. As the inclusion of the bicycle in mobility laws is new for Berlin (even for the whole of Germany), searching abroad for best practices seems an attractive form of policymaking. This research explores the extent to which the benefits of policy transfer determine the choice of policymakers in Berlin to participate in the policy transfer process.
Moreover, it explores in what way the barriers experienced in the policy transfer process influence the outcome. Bicycle policymaking in Berlin is characterized by a co-creation process between the local government and organizations such as Changing Cities (a civil organization) and ADFC (the German bicycle association). Empirical data was gathered through semi- structured interviews with policymakers and other actors related to policymaking in Berlin.
This study demonstrates that evidence-based policymaking that policy transfer offers is experienced as the benefit that is most decisive in the decision whether to participate in policy transfer. Apart from that, there are several barriers that influence the outcome of policy transfer. This research found out that barriers related to the actual transferring of a policy do influence the outcome of the policy transfer to a greater extent than barriers experienced while searching for suitable policies to transfer. This study is concluded with recommendations for policymakers on how to deal with those barriers.
Keywords: policy transfer, policy transfer process, benefits, barriers, cycling policies, sustainable mobility.
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Index
Colophon ... i
Preface ... ii
Abstract ... iii
Index ... iv
List of figures, tables, and boxes ... vii
Figures ... vii
Tables ... vii
Boxes ... vii
List of abbreviations ... viii
1. Introduction ... 1
1.1 Background ... 1
1.1.1 Cycling in Berlin ... 1
1.1.2 Benefits of cycling ... 1
1.1.3 Policy transfer in Berlin ... 2
1.2 Scientific and societal relevance ... 3
1.3 Research objective and research questions ... 4
1.4 Thesis outline ... 4
2. Theoretical framework ... 6
2.1 Policy transfer and similar terms ... 6
2.2 The process of policy transfer ... 8
2.2.1 Dissatisfaction ... 8
2.2.2 Searching for satisfaction... 9
2.2.3 Defining what to transfer ... 10
2.2.4 Comparative research ... 11
2.2.5 Implementation and evaluation ...12
2.2.6 Actors involved ...12
2.3 Benefits of policy transfer ... 13
2.4 Barriers in the process ...14
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2.4.1 Barriers in searching phase ...14
2.4.2 Barriers in the transferring phase... 15
2.5 Conceptual model ...16
3. Methodology ... 18
3.1 Research methods ... 18
3.2 Data collection ...19
3.2.1 Literature review ... 20
3.2.2 Policy analysis ... 20
3.3.3 Interviews ...21
3.3 Data analysis ... 23
3.4 Ethical considerations ... 24
4. The Berlin context ... 25
4.1 The political context ... 25
4.2 Cycling in Berlin ... 26
5. Results ... 31
5.1 Policy transfer process ... 31
5.1.1 Dissatisfaction with status quo ... 31
5.1.2 Searching for satisfaction ... 32
5.1.3 Defining what to transfer ... 34
5.1.4 Comparative research ... 35
5.1.5 Implementation and evaluation ... 36
5.1.6 Actors involved ... 36
5.1.7 Discussing the policy transfer process... 37
5.2 Benefits of policy transfer ... 38
5.2.1 Discussing the benefits ... 39
5.3 Barriers in the process ... 40
5.3.1 Barriers in searching phase ... 40
5.3.2 Barriers in transferring phase ...41
5.3.3 Discussing the barriers... 42
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6. Discussion ... 44
6.1 Reflection on policy transfer ... 44
6.2 Implications of the corona crisis ... 44
7. Conclusion ... 46
7.1 The Berlin cycling context ... 46
7.2 The policy transfer process ... 46
7.3 Benefits of policy transfer ... 47
7.4 Barriers in the process ... 48
7.5 Influence of benefits and barriers on policy transfer process ... 48
7.6 Recommendations for policymakers ... 49
7.7 Reflection ... 51
7.8 Future research ... 52
References ... 54
Appendix I – policy transfer and similar terms ... 58
Policy diffusion ... 58
Lesson drawing ... 58
Policy transfer ... 58
Policy convergence ... 58
Policy translation ... 59
Appendix II – Literature coding scheme ... 60
Appendix III – Interview guides ... 62
Exploratory interviews ... 62
Interviews with practitioners ... 64
Appendix IV – Coding scheme ... 66
Appendix V – Informed consent ... 68
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List of figures, tables, and boxes
Figures
Figure 2.1 Conceptual model
Figure 3.1 Research strategy
Tables
Table 2.1 Policy transfer and similar terms Table 3.1 Documents used for the policy analysis
Table 3.2 Overview of interviewees
Boxes
Box 4.1 The 10 Goals of the Volksentscheid Fahrrad Box 4.2 The main bicycle goals from the Mobility Act
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List of abbreviations
ADAC Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club
ADFC Allgemeiner Deutscher Fahrrad-Club
BUND Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland
BVG Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe
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1. Introduction
1.1 Background
1.1.1 Cycling in Berlin
Over the last decades, issues related to car use have become more urgent in Berlin (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, 2017). By addressing the pressing problems related to car use in Berlin, a big civil initiative movement influenced the political discussions about transport (Volksentscheid Fahrrad, 2020). Since the shift of the local political landscape towards a predominantly green spectrum as a result of the parliamentary elections in 2016, increasing the share of environment-friendly modes has been one of the main objectives for transport planning of the Berlin senate (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, 2017).
Cycling is a frequently proposed environment-friendly transportation alternative. It is proven that for small distances in urban areas cycling can be faster than other transportation modes (Heinen et al., 2010). The bicycle has become increasingly visible in the streets of Berlin. From 2004 to 2012, the bicycle traffic has grown with 50% (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, 2017). In contrast to this increase in bicycle trips, the bicycle infrastructure has been lagging behind for many years, leading to an unsafe perception of cycling among citizens, according to the civil initiative Volksentscheid Fahrrad (bicycle referendum; Volksentscheid Fahrrad, 2020). Under pressure of this civil initiative, the in 2016 newly formed senate department committed itself to improve the cycling circumstances in the coming years in order to increase the share of cyclists (Von Schneidemesser & Stasiak, 2019).
1.1.2 Benefits of cycling
Realising a higher share of cyclists is relevant for the city state of Berlin for several reasons.
Firstly, as explained, cycling is seen as a sustainable transportation mode, and therefore it contributes to the objective of the city state of Berlin to enhance the environment-friendly transportation modes. Secondly, bicycles have a more positive influence on the liveability of a city than cars. Not just because of the low degree of noise disturbance and air pollution, but also because of the difference in space that both vehicles take up (Heinen et al., 2010; Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development, 2012). Thirdly, an increase in the share of cyclists makes cycling safer. The bigger the share of bicycles on the road, the more visible cyclists are, and the more other road users will adjust to them (Heinen et al., 2010). This is an important factor for the city state of Berlin since the share of cyclists as accident victims has grown from 29% to 32% in the time frame of 2008-2013 (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, 2017). Lastly, investments in cycling
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infrastructure are not as expensive as investments in most other types of infrastructure (e.g.
car infrastructure and public transportation; Börjesson & Eliasson, 2012).
Furthermore, from an individual’s perspective, better cycling policies and more investments in the cycling infrastructure are of importance. Next to the notion that cycling in urban areas can be faster than other means of transport, cycling is a relatively cheap means of transport (Heinen et al., 2010) and it has significant health benefits (Lawlor et al., 2003).
1.1.3 Policy transfer in Berlin
Compared to Berlin, several German and international cities are more experienced in implementing bicycle policies (Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment, 2013). The city state of Berlin has expressed their intentions to learn from or adopt successful examples from other cities (Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment, 2013). Learning from other cities is a frequently used strategy for improving policies. A widely acknowledged concept that explains this principle is policy transfer.
Dolowitz and Marsh (1996) refer to policy transfer as a process in which knowledge about a policy in one context is used in the development of policies in another context. Hence, policy transfer does not describe the literal copying of a certain policy, but it does describe the process of mutating policy ideas from one place to another (Stone, 2012).
Policy transfer offers several benefits. For instance, policy transfer contributes to more evidence-based policies by offering policymakers the option to adopt successful policies from elsewhere instead of ‘reinventing the wheel’ on their own (Timms, 2011; Marsden & Stead, 2011). However, several barriers can be faced in the policy transfer process that influence the outcome. For example, the search for other policies is constrained by time and financial resources of governments (Marsden et al., 2009; Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). Also, later in the process, contextual differences can be underestimated, which can cause a failed transfer (De Jong, 2004).
Altogether, policy transfer offers many benefits provided that it is carried out considering the barriers. Following the arguments provided by Dolowitz & Marsh (1996), most voluntary policy transfers arise from a dissatisfaction with the status quo. For the city state of Berlin, this dissatisfaction is generated by the shift in political values, and the increasing societal awareness and organization (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, 2017; Volksentscheid Fahrrad, 2020). Although a lot of progress has been made since the last senate elections, the general idea of including cycling in an integral mobility strategy is new for the city state of Berlin. Therefore, a logical step would be to search for and learn from successful examples of other cities that have experience with that. In fact, the city state of Berlin did already acknowledge that other cities have successful examples within their
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cycling policy (Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment, 2013).
Learning from other cities can be beneficial for the city state of Berlin. This study explores to what extent the city state of Berlin experiences benefits to policy transfer and what barriers are faced in the policy transfer process.
1.2 Scientific and societal relevance
The policy transfer concept originates from political studies and is mostly studied in relation to public policies (Stone, 2012; Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). Authors argue that policy transfer has gained relevance over the last decades, as means of communication have become easier (Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000; Benson & Jordan, 2011). However, the introduction of policy transfer within transport studies is relatively new (Marsden & Stead, 2011). According to Marsden & Stead (2011), policy transfer is a relevant concept for transport studies since transport policies have much in common with other parts of public policy. The provision of transportation means is often seen as a public good, and the development of transport policies can be as political as the development of other public policies. As a response to the knowledge gap with regard to policy transfer within transport studies, calls have been made to examine the process of policy transfer within transport policies more thoroughly (Marsden & Stead, 2011).
Previous research on the relevance of policy transfer, within transport studies but also in general, was mainly focused on trans-national policy transfers (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996; Stone, 2012; Marsden & Stead, 2011; Stead et al., 2008). To clarify, Timms (2011) does state that organizations such as the European Union are mainly interested in policy transfers between countries. Contrasting, research about the policy transfer process of smaller scale organizations such as local governments seems underexposed, even though it has benefits compared to international policy transfer. For instance, transferring large scale policies is tricky as it can result in a lack of public acceptability (Marsden et al., 2009). Instead, transferring smaller scale policies seems more accepted. Therefore, this study contributes to the research gap regarding transfers of smaller scale policies.
Next to contributing scientifically to a broader view of policy transfer within transport policies, this study contains societal relevance as it helps policymakers to make better informed decisions concerning the policy transfer possibilities. As stated previously, scientific research on policy transfer is predominantly focused on policy transfer between nations. However, practice indicates that policy transfer on a smaller scale, or more specifically, between cities, does occur (e.g. USE, 2019; Timms, 2011). This study can offer new perspectives for policymakers regarding the opportunities and barriers for policy transfers between cities within the cycling context.
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Furthermore, this study fits perfectly in the timeline of cycling developments that Berlin is experiencing right now. Although the city state of Berlin already started with structural investments in cycling infrastructure around the beginning of the century, real progress has only been made since the last senate elections (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, 2017). A combination of a societal pressure and a change in political believes has led to a serious commitment of the senate to improve the cycling circumstances. As this is something that has not been done before on such a serious note in Berlin, looking abroad for useful policies might offer opportunities for the city state. The results of this study offer support for the city state of Berlin by exploring the benefits and the barriers of transferring cycling policies that have to be considered. Moreover, this study provides recommendations for Berlin policymakers to address the barriers.
1.3 Research objective and research questions
Several cycling developments of the recent years have steered the city state of Berlin towards engaging in policy transfer. Engaging in policy transfer can be beneficial for policymakers for several reasons, even though the outcome is influenced by barriers experienced in the process.
The aim of this study is to explore to what extent the benefits of policy transfer determine the choice of policymakers in Berlin to participate in the policy transfer process and to explore in what way the barriers experienced in the policy transfer process influence the outcome.
Following the research objective, the main research question to be answered is:
To what extent do the benefits of policy transfer determine the choice of policymakers to participate in the policy transfer process and how do barriers experienced in the policy transfer process influence the outcome?
The main research question will be answered with the use of the following sub-questions:
- What does the context of cycling policies in Berlin look like?
- What does the policy transfer process look like for cycling policies in Berlin?
- What benefits of policy transfer do policymakers in Berlin experience?
- What barriers do policymakers in Berlin face in the policy transfer process?
1.4 Thesis outline
The remainder of this research is structured as follows. Chapter 2 provides a literature review by discussing policy transfer and similar terms, the policy transfer process, and the benefits and barriers of policy transfer that literature provides. Deriving from this, a conceptual model is presented that combines the elements of the theoretical framework. Chapter 3 discusses the methodology used for this research. Chapter 4 provides insight into the political context of
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Berlin and the developments regarding cycling policies in Berlin. Chapter 5 describes and discusses the results of the empirical research. Apart from that, chapter 6 provides a more general discussion on the concept of policy transfer. Finally, chapter 7 answers the research questions and gives insight into recommendations for policymakers, the limitations of this study, and recommendations for further research.
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2. Theoretical framework
This chapter reviews the literature regarding policy transfer. After discussing the concept of policy transfer, this chapter elaborates upon the policy transfer process. Next, the benefits and barriers are discussed. Lastly, this chapter presents a conceptual model where the elements discussed in this chapter are combined.
2.1 Policy transfer and similar terms
The concept of policy transfer has been widely discussed in academic literature in the past decades, originally within the fields of political science and international relations (Stone, 2012). While ideas of policies traveling across space and time have been around for more than half a century now, Dolowitz & Marsh (1996) have set the stage at the end of the nineties with their article ‘Who Learns What from Whom: a Review of the Policy Transfer Literature’. Ever since, research into policy transfer underwent exponential growth (Benson & Jordan, 2011).
Up until today, nearly every article on policy transfer or related concepts does refer to Dolowitz
& Marsh (1996) – both on a positive and a critical note.
Although research into policy transfer has grown substantially in the past decades, a growth in the occurrence of policy transfer in practice remains disputed by scholars. Proponents claim that the rapid growth of means of communication since the Second World War facilitated a growth in the occurrence of policy transfer (e.g. Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000). Nevertheless, according to critics, clear measures to assess whether the occurrence of policy transfer has increased are missing, due to the broad scope of the concept (e.g. James & Lodge, 2003).
The following definition of Dolowitz & Marsh (1996) is used universally: policy transfer is “a process in which knowledge about policies, administrative arrangements, institutions etc. in one time and/or place is used in the development of policies, administrative arrangements and institutions in another time and/or place” (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996, p. 344). Although this definition distinguishes between transfers across time and transfers across place, most articles only describe the latter form of policy transfer (James & Lodge, 2003). For pragmatical reasons, the focus of this research is on policy transfer across space as well.
Dolowitz & Marsh (1996) distinguish between voluntary policy transfers, indirect coercive policy transfers, and direct coercive policy transfers. These three distinctions can be related to each other on a continuum – running from voluntary to direct coercive transfers (Dolowitz &
Marsh, 2000). Most policy transfers have both voluntary and coercive characteristics; hence they take place somewhere on this continuum, in between the two extremes. Direct coercive forms of transfer mostly occur on an international scale, under pressure of disproportional power relations, or with the involvement of supra-national organizations (Dolowitz & Marsh,
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1996; Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000; Benson & Jordan, 2011). In the case of cycling policies in Berlin, there are no powerful supra-national organizations involved. Therefore, this research is focused on the voluntary side of policy transfers.
Most literature with regard to policy transfer is focused on transfers between countries (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996; Rose, 1991; Stone, 2012). This emphasis is explainable as the concept of policy transfer originates from political science and international relations. Besides, most coercive transfers occur between nations (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). Nonetheless, authors do acknowledge that policy transfer occurs on a smaller scale as well (Stone, 2012; Dolowitz &
Marsh, 2000). In fact, policy transfers within the transport sector most often occur on a city level (Marsden & Stead, 2011; Timms, 2011). As the focus of this research is on transport policy transfers on a city scale as well, the focus of the theoretical framework is on city governments.
Next to policy transfer, a lot of similar concepts have been developed over the years. Those concepts have been summarized in Table 2.1. A broader description of those concepts is attached in Appendix I. Despite the criticism on policy transfer and the development of new, more comprehensive terms as alternatives, policy transfer is still the most widely acknowledged term within these studies. Furthermore, criticism on policy transfer is mostly related to early studies of policy transfer. Nowadays, aspects such as the complexity of the context are more acknowledged within policy transfer studies. For the sake of consistency, the term policy transfer is used in this study, not referring to the definition described in early studies but to a more encompassing definition of policy transfer.
Concept Description Authors
Policy diffusion
Emphasis on the patterns of policy diffusion; criticised because of the ignorance of the process of policy transfer itself.
Rose (1991); Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996); Dolowitz & Marsh (2000);
Benson & Jordan (2011); Dobbin et al. (2007).
Lesson drawing
Emphasis on the voluntary part of policy transfers; implicit assumption that all transfers are voluntary and rational.
Rose (1991); Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996); Dolowitz & Marsh (2000);
Benson & Jordan (2011); Dobbin et al. (2007); James & Lodge (2003).
Policy transfer
Focused on the process of policy transfer; encompasses both voluntary and coercive transfers.
All authors.
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convergence
Emphasis on the alignment of policies influenced by global developments or the pressure of supra-national organizations.
Stone (2012); Benson & Jordan (2011).
Policy translation
A criticism on policy transfer; focuses on the complexity of the context and the disturbances within the process of policy transfer.
Stone (2012).
Table 2.1 | Policy transfer and similar terms
2.2 The process of policy transfer
This section describes the process of a policy transfer – starting with a dissatisfaction with the status quo, and mostly ending with an evaluation. Whereas the section is organized in clear consecutive steps, which may indicate that the process is linear and rational, the footnote has to be made that this is far from true in practice. Although Rose (1991) attempts to describe the process in straight-forward steps, he does emphasize that there are limits to the execution of those steps in practice (James & Lodge, 2003). Also, Dolowitz & Marsh (1996) state that the process of policy transfer is messy, and that different streams need to cross at the right moment for a policy to transfer in a good manner. Nevertheless, as an attempt to get an understanding of how such a process would ideally look like, this section is structured in five steps describing the process. The last part, section 2.2.6, describes the actors involved in the process.
Usually, a donor party as well as a recipient party is involved in the policy transfer process (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). While from the donor’s perspective there are specific strategies and processes prior to and in a policy transfer process as well, the focus of this section is on the process from a recipient’s perspective, defined by the scope of the research.
2.2.1 Dissatisfaction
In voluntary policy transfers, the primary driving force is some form of dissatisfaction with the status quo, perceived by politicians (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). Rose (1991) distinguishes three factors that can generate dissatisfaction. Firstly, dissatisfaction can be generated by perceived uncertainty. This uncertainty is for instance caused by lagging behind in the use of technological developments. Secondly, dissatisfaction can be generated by changes in the policy environment. This means that policies stay unaltered, but the effect of a policy becomes negative. Thirdly, dissatisfaction can be generated by changes in political values. Often these changes in values are a result of elections. When the status quo within a city government is disrupted, policymakers will first try to solve the problem with their own knowledge. Only
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when their own knowledge is not sufficient, policymakers will search for satisfaction across time and space.
2.2.2 Searching for satisfaction
In the search for satisfaction, the city government’s own past is the first place to look at (Rose, 1991). Nonetheless, when there is a change in the policy environment, or when the city government is confronted with a new problem, looking at the past is not sufficient. Then, according to Rose (1991), policymakers have two alternatives. Speculating how a new programme would work in the future is the first and searching across space is the second alternative. The benefits of searching across space and eventually engaging in a policy transfer (as opposed to speculating, in this case) are described in section 2.3.
In searching across space, policymakers can search for lessons at different governmental levels within a country (Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000). For example, policymakers from local governments are not restricted to search for lessons at other local governments, as they can also look at regional or national governments. Nevertheless, policymakers from a certain governmental level do most often look for policies at other organizations within the same level, simply because governmental organizations within a certain level are similarly structured and deal with similar issues (De Jong & Geerlings, 2005).
Factors such as language, culture, system, proximity, and economic structure determine the search for a policy solution (De Jong & Geerlings, 2005). Marsden & Stead (2011) found in their case study that most policymakers are biased towards their local or regional neighbours in their search. Often the assumption is made that policy transfer is most likely to succeed between similar cities (De Jong & Geerlings, 2005). According to De Jong (2004), this view is problematic, as in transfers between similar cities the contextual differences are underestimated.
Many authors acknowledge that policymakers act within the confines of bounded rationality (Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000; Dobbin et al., 2007; Timms, 2011; Marsden & Stead, 2011).
According to Marsden et al. (2012) and Monios (2017), policymakers are nowadays confronted with an information overload in their search for a suitable policy elsewhere. On top of that, policymakers are constrained by time and budget (Marsden et al., 2009). As policymakers lack the cognitive capacity to filter the available information properly within time and budget constraints (Dobbin et al., 2007), they tend to be biased towards cities that they identify with (Rose, 1991).
Due to this overload of information, peer to peer contacts and policy networks are the most frequently used sources of information within the transport sector (Marsden et al., 2009).
Instead of conducting literature analyses, policymakers mostly gain information by the ‘word
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of mouth’ (Bray et al., 2011). However, in some cases general literature is used or universities and research organizations provide information (Marsden et al., 2009; Timms, 2011).
2.2.3 Defining what to transfer
According to Dolowitz & Marsh (2000, p.12), there are eight objects that can be transferred:
“policy goals, policy content, policy instruments, policy programs, institutions, ideologies, ideas and attitudes, and negative lessons”. In this enumeration, they make a clear distinction between policies and programs, where policies are seen as broad statements of intention, used to demarcate the direction, and programs are seen as concrete means of implementing those policies (Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000). Monios (2017) adds that higher level policy goals often remain unchanged, while the means to reach those goals are generally transferred. For example, the goal to reduce the emissions remains the same, while the means to reach that goal can be exchanged among governments. Stead et al. (2008) affirm that focusing on achievable, practical implementations is more fruitful than focusing on large-scale reforms, taking into mind the limited amount of resources and the public resistance.
Institutions, defined as ‘the rules of the game’, are divided in formal and informal institutions (De Jong, 2004). Whereas formal institutions encompass the legal and official rules, the informal institutions consist of cultural values and norms. When transplanting institutions, a tension arises between formal and informal institutions (De Jong, 2004). In most cases, only the formal institutions are transferred, assuming that informal institutions will gradually adjust to the new situation. However, according to De Jong (2004), it is exactly those informal institutions that should be studied carefully by policymakers, as the norms and values determine the success of a policy.
While policymakers often look for best practices at other cities, negative lessons can be transferred as well (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). In this case, policymakers learn what not to do from mistakes of other cities. Negative lessons do obviously not result in implementation by the recipient. In most cases, negative lessons are transferred by personal contact rather than through formal reports (Timms, 2011), as making a negative lesson available for third parties results in negative promotion of the donor city.
Dolowitz & Marsh (2000) distinguish between four gradations of policy transfer: copying, emulation, hybridization, and inspiration. The most straightforward degree of policy transfer is copying. By copying a policy, the policy as a whole is getting adopted into a new setting, without any changes. This turns out to be hard in practice as the institutional and contextual variables of the donor and recipient organization need to be equal (Rose, 1991). Emulation happens when a whole policy is transferred while taking different contextual circumstances into account (Rose, 1991). The former and the latter forms of policy transfer are seen as ‘hard’
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forms of transfer and are particularly used for coercive transfers (Benson & Jordan, 2011). De Jong & Geerlings (2005) warn that the more a policy is literally transferred into a new context, the greater the chance of resistance will be. With hybridization, elements from different policies are combined into a new policy that suits the recipient city. If different best practices are combined into a new policy, policy transfer can lead to innovation (Rose, 1991). Inspiration is seen as studying familiar issues in an unfamiliar setting (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996).
Inspiration can also lead to innovation, as ideas about a problem are enriched with fresh information. Benson & Jordan (2011) stress that other forms of transfer such as non-transfer, failed transfer and the transfer of negative lessons need to be considered as well.
2.2.4 Comparative research
Rose (1991) stresses the importance of a comparative research in the form of a prospective evaluation. A prospective evaluation “combines empirical evidence about how and why a programme works in country X, with hypotheses about its likely success or failure in country Y” (Rose, 1991, p. 23). The advantage of an ex ante evaluation is that it reduces the uncertainty about the functionality of a policy before the policy is transferred. This way, theoretically, potential failures of a policy are detected in advance and conditions that are of importance for making a policy succeed are determined. Nevertheless, it seems unfeasible to incorporate all elements of the complex context of environment X and environment Y into such a systematic evaluation method. Therefore, in practice, this method can only be used to get an indication of the possible success or failure of a certain policy in a new context. However, as described previously, early research on policy transfer processes is disputed for being too rational, as case studies turn out that the process of policy transfer is often determined by bounded rationality of policymakers. A multiple case study conducted by Marsden et al. (2012) confirms this, and besides, they even conclude that research processes of policy transfers were often steered by preferred outcomes.
Even if the research process is biased, policymakers need to be aware of contextual differences in order to make a policy transfer succeed. As stated earlier, especially in transfers between similar countries, contextual differences are often underestimated (De Jong, 2004). Benson &
Jordan (2011) make a distinction between contextual factors from the donor side and contextual factors from the recipient side. On the donor side, the “wider social and policy context” can reduce the transferability of a policy (Benson & Jordan, 2011, p. 372). On the recipient side, contextual factors such as path dependency of policies, the density of institutional structures, and the political context play a role in the transferability. Besides, research needs to be conducted into the institutional situation of the donor city and the adjustments that need to be made in the recipient city (Benson & Jordan, 2011). As stressed earlier, it is of great importance to do this for formal as well as informal institutions.
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In the research process, external parties such as consultants do often play a role (Marsden et al., 2009). In most cases, this concerns private companies that are experienced in policy transfer research. Policymakers ask consultants to conduct a comparative research and to advice on the implementation of the policy in the new context. Also, the involvement of consultants in the policy transfer process might lead to biased outcomes, as policy advice differs per consultancy party and policymakers can decide which consultancy party to involve.
2.2.5 Implementation and evaluation
After a thorough research on the contextual factors of both systems and on how to bridge these differences, the implementation phase starts. The implementation of a transferred policy is underexposed in literature. The previously described steps of the process of policy transfer are obviously the most interesting for policy transfer researchers, as those steps do significantly differ from other forms of policymaking. Once the previously described steps are carried out properly, the implementation phase is relatable to the implementation of regular policies.
Therefore, this study will not elaborate on the implementation either.
For the evaluation, the prior motivations of policymakers are important (Dolowitz & Marsh, 2000), as not all lessons learned from other contexts have to result in new policies. Authors state that it is hard to say if policy transfer often leads to an improvement of the situation, as there is a scientific gap in the evaluation of the success or failure of policy transfers (Marsden
& Stead, 2011; Dobbin et al., 2007). According to Stone (2012), failed policy transfers are often not well documented, which makes it hard to evaluate what went wrong in those cases. The literature does not provide methods for how to conduct an evaluation of policy transfers, but the previous arguments do demonstrate the relevance of evaluation.
2.2.6 Actors involved
In general, many different actors or parties can be involved in policy transfer. Dolowitz &
Marsh (2000) distinguish between nine types of actors that can be involved, namely: elected officials, political parties, bureaucrats or civil servants, pressure groups, policy entrepreneurs or experts, supra-national institutions, consultants, think tanks, and transnational corporations. Marsden & Stead (2011) found that local officials play the largest role in policy transfers between local governments in the transport sector. Nonetheless, different actors can be involved in different phases of a policy transfer. Marsden et al. (2009) confirm that local officials are the most important actors in policy transfers within the transport sector, although they did find that consultants and private suppliers have often been involved in the research phase because of their experience with policy transfers. Supra-national organizations can also be involved in voluntary transfers. Timms (2011) noted in his research on urban transport policy transfers between European cities that the European Union played a central role in those by funding the transfers and bringing actors from different cities together.
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2.3 Benefits of policy transfer
Policy transfer offers several benefits for policymakers. First, and most obvious, policy transfer contributes to more evidence-based policymaking by offering policymakers the chance to adopt successful policies from elsewhere instead of ‘reinventing the wheel’ on their own (Timms, 2011). Cities in the industrialized world face similar challenges (Bray et al., 2011), so it would be beneficial for cities to learn from best practices that address those challenges (Timms, 2011). According to Marsden & Stead (2011, p. 499), there is a common believe in Europe and the United States that “policy solutions already exist and simply need to be implemented more widely”. Policy transfer allows policymakers to learn from those solutions and implement them in other contexts, as cities do not always have the in-house expertise to tackle problems on their own (Marsden & Stead, 2011).
Second, and related to the previous point, policy transfer leads to more efficient policymaking from the recipient’s perspective. Learning from elsewhere is often seen by policymakers as a quick, cheap, and simple means to improve policies (Marsden & Stead, 2011; Dolowitz &
Marsh, 2000). This indicates that solutions from elsewhere can be copied easily into another context, which is not always the case. Nevertheless, by engaging in a policy transfer, newcomer costs can be avoided, resulting in cheaper and more time-efficient policymaking (Stead et al., 2008).
Third, policy transfer can be used as a means to stimulate innovation. As explained previously, policy transfer generates innovation when elements from different policies from elsewhere are combined into a new policy (Rose, 1991). Also, more general, fresh ideas from elsewhere about the means to address a problem can lead to innovation (Rose, 1991).
Fourth, in practice, policy transfer is seen as a means to legitimize political actions (Marsden et al., 2009). Marsden & Stead (2011) found that within the field of transport, one of the main reasons of policymakers to engage in policy transfer was to legitimize policy goals set by the local government. By adopting a policy similar to elsewhere, policymakers avoid the responsibility to defend the approach (Bray et al., 2011). Related to this, referring to a best practice elsewhere is helpful in generating support (De Jong & Geerlings, 2005). This can be of value especially in times of elections.
Fifth, a reason for local transport policymakers in Europe to carry out a policy transfer is the increasing amount of European Union funds that is dedicated for this purpose (Timms, 2011).
Policy transfers motivated by European Union funds lie in between voluntary and indirect coercive forms of policy transfer since policymakers are not obliged to participate in a policy transfer, but they get influenced by getting a reward if they do participate. There are also other (supra-)national organizations that offer funds for policy transfers, because for instance
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national organizations have a stake in ensuring that policies in different cities are more or less on a same level (Stead et al., 2008).
2.4 Barriers in the process
Next to the benefits, there are several barriers that influence the process of policy transfer. In practice, policymakers will not face all of the below mentioned barriers in every policy transfer process. In fact, some barriers can even influence policymakers’ choices within the process unnoticed. The manner of dealing with the barriers that policymakers face will define the result of the policy transfer. In some cases, a barrier can even lead to a termination of the policy transfer process. The barriers are divided into two types: barriers experienced in the searching phase and barriers experienced in the transferring phase. To clarify, the searching phase contains the first three steps of the policy transfer process: the dissatisfaction with the status quo, the search for satisfaction, and defining what to transfer. The transferring phase contains the last two steps in the transferring process, namely the comparative research, and the implementation and evaluation. Both types of barriers are discussed below.
2.4.1 Barriers in searching phase
There are several barriers that can bother the searching phase of policy transfer. Firstly, the barrier of bounded rationality can determine the search area. As described previously, policymakers lack the cognitive capability to make rational choices, and therefore, they tend to search for solutions at familiar cities in the searching process (e.g. Marsden & Stead, 2011). On top of that, policymakers tend to steer the process towards preferred outcomes (Marsden et al., 2012).
Secondly, the searching process is dependent on the amount and quality of available information. With the rise of the Internet, the ‘world of information’ became more complex (Timms, 2011). Multiple authors concluded from their case studies that the overload of available information is problematic in the search for a suitable solution elsewhere (Monios, 2017; Marsden et al., 2009). Besides, the quality and reliability of the information is hard to verify (Monios, 2017). As a result of that, and related to the biased view of policymakers, the search for information is often unsystematic and ad hoc (Marsden et al., 2009). Also, in most cases, only best practices are documented, while fails of policy implementation are not available (Stone, 2012).
Thirdly, and related to the previous argument, language issues can form a barrier in policy transfer (Timms, 2011). This barrier can particularly obstruct the process of international policy transfers. Besides, Marsden et al. (2009) found that policy literature is often not focused on policymakers, as it is too extensive and technical.
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Fourthly, the search process is constrained by time and financial resources of city governments and the policymakers themselves (Marsden et al., 2009; Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996). The size of the city government does often determine the time and financial resources, where bigger governments have more possibilities than smaller ones (Marsden et al., 2009). Related to this, the amount of available funding can constrain the financial resources of a government (Marsden et al., 2009).
Fifthly, in the search for suitable policies to adopt, policymakers can disagree in what is desirable (Rose, 1991). This will lead to uncertainty about the preferences of the city government and can obstruct the policy transfer.
2.4.2 Barriers in the transferring phase
Next to the searching phase, there are several barriers with regard to the transferring phase.
Firstly, the complexity of a policy determines the transferability (Dolowitz & Marsh, 1996;
Marsden & Stead, 2011). Factors that indicate the complexity of a policy are 1) the amount of goals of a policy, 2) the complexity of the problem, 3) the directness of the relationship between the problem and the ‘solution’, 4) the amount of side effects of a policy, 5) the access to information about a policy, and 6) the predictiveness of outcomes of a policy (Dolowitz &
Marsh, 1996).
Secondly, the lack of a political continuity can make a policy transfer fail (Stead et al., 2012).
There can arise a gap between (transferred) policies and the implementation or institutionalization of those policies (Stead et al., 2008). Changes in political values, as a result of elections, can obstruct the political continuity with regard to policy transfers.
Thirdly, the context of both the donor country and the recipient country has to be taken into account, because as Peck (2011, p.3) argues: “context matters, in the sense that policy regimes and landscapes are more than empty spaces across which borrowing and learning takes place”.
As described in section 2.2.5, neglecting the contextual factors on the donor’s and recipient’s side can make a policy transfer fail (Benson & Jordan, 2011). Especially for transfers between similar countries, this barrier is often underestimated (De Jong, 2004). The context of a country, region or city is dependent of the formal and informal institutions. As explained, informal institutions are often neglected in the policy transfer process, resulting in a barrier in the implementation of a policy (De Jong, 2004).
Fourthly, public resistance can constrain the transfer process (Marsden et al., 2009). Often it is especially the fear for public resistance that can obstruct the policy implementation. One reason for this can be the scale of the policy that is being transferred (Stead et al., 2012). A large-scale institutional reform is not likely to receive much public support. Instead, smaller policy goals seem more accepted.
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2.5 Conceptual model
In order to determine the relationships between all the above described aspects related to policy transfer, a conceptual model is created and presented in Figure 2.1. The model represents only a schematic, simplified view of the process in practice, as the process is rather messy and iterative. In blue, the different (combined) steps of the process of policy transfer are distinguished. As explained earlier, a voluntary policy transfer normally starts with a dissatisfaction with the status quo, meaning that a policy in a certain context (in this case, context A) is no longer sufficient for dealing with the issues within that context. If this is the case, and if there is no in-house expertise for dealing with this issue, policymakers can first decide to look at the past of the organization. If the organization has no experience with the problem at stake, policymakers can either start speculating, or search across space for solutions in other contexts. However, the former option is often seen as an ungrounded method.
Policymakers will start to search across space when the benefits of transferring a policy (presented as the green arrow) do outweigh the benefits of other policymaking approaches (i.e.
with in-house expertise or speculating). Policy transfer is beneficial as it is evidence-based, efficient, innovative, it can be used as legitimization, and there is an increasing amount of funds dedicated to policy transfer.
The next step would be to search for suitable policies in other contexts. As policymakers are rationally bounded, they will look for policies at city governments with a similar language, culture, economic situation, and institutional setting. Also, policymakers need to define what it is that has to be transferred and the degree of transfer. In this part of the process, barriers with regard to the searching of policies play a role. The bounded rationality of policymakers, the overload of information, language issues, financial and time constraints, and a disagreement about the suitability of policies can influence or even obstruct the policy transfer process. The manner of dealing with the faced barriers defines the result of the searching phase. For instance, neglecting a barrier can lead to a suboptimal result. In some cases, the policy transfer process can even be terminated by a barrier. On top of that, some barriers can influence the searching phase unnoticed, as policymakers might not be aware of those barriers.
Depending on the outcomes of the searching phase, policymakers will move over to the comparing phase. Here, policymakers will compare the preferred ‘best practice’ (Policy X) in the other context (context B), determined from the searching phase, with what the policy would look like in their own context. Within this step, the differences in contexts and institutional settings of both governments will be compared. Based on this, all the steps required for the transferring itself will be determined. Afterwards, policymakers will move over to the transferring & evaluating phase, which means that the policy can be transferred from context
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B to context A. The implementation process is similar to the implementation of ‘regular’
policies. Evaluation is an important step that requires attention after the implementation of a policy. Barriers with regard to transferring determine the success or failure of a policy transfer.
Barriers such as the complexity of a policy, the lack of political continuity, contextual differences, and public resistance are of major importance in these phases of the process.
Figure 2.1 | Conceptual model
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3. Methodology
This chapter elaborates upon the research methods used in this study. Furthermore, this chapter discusses the data collection and data analysis processes of this research. Lastly, the ethical considerations of this study are discussed.
3.1 Research methods
This research is of explorative nature since it aims to acquire an understanding of the role of policy transfer in the context of cycling policies, a combination that has been studied rarely. A qualitative approach suits this aim because of its focus on the reconstruction of the complexity of a phenomenon into a comprehensive picture (Flick, 2015). This allows to get a deeper understanding of a relation in a not well-established context of research. As demonstrated in the theoretical framework, researchers emphasize the complex and irrational nature of policy transfer. Therefore, a qualitative research method seems adequate. Clifford et al. (2010) do indeed argue that qualitative research offers the possibility to explore subjective, messy, irrational, and contradictory processes driven by human behaviour. A disadvantage of a qualitative approach is that the results of this research are generalizable to a minimal extent, as the outcomes are context-specific (Flick, 2015). A quantitative approach that does offer a broader generalizability has been considered but seems less appropriate as it does not leave space for subjective narratives (Clifford et al., 2010). Moreover, earlier quantitative studies on policy transfer have been criticized for not considering the multiplicity of the policy transfer process and only focusing on the general patterns instead (Stone, 2012).
In order to understand the role that policy transfer plays in cycling policies in practice, a case study is conducted. According to Simons (2009, p.21), a case study is “an in-depth exploration from multiple perspectives of the complexity and uniqueness of a particular project, policy, institution, program or system in a ‘real life’ context”. The iterative and irrational processes of a policy transfer ask for a case study as research approach. Moreover, a case study offers the possibility to study the politically and culturally dependent nature of policy transfer in a specific context. This helps to create an in-depth knowledge of the phenomenon in that specific context. A case study – as a strategy within the qualitative research spectrum – provides context-specific results that are not directly generalizable (Flick, 2015). However, as Flyvbjerg (2006, p.227) explains, “that knowledge cannot be generalized does not mean that it cannot enter into the collective process of knowledge accumulation in a given field or in a society”. An additional perspective on the complex process of policy transfer will only contribute to a more comprehensive picture of policy transfer processes, leading to a better understanding of it.
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Moreover, Flyvbjerg (2006) stresses that the case selection determines the generalizability of the outcomes.
Several underlying reasons made the city state of Berlin an appropriate case for this research.
First, as a requirement, the case (seen as a city government) should have pronounced ambitions to improve cycling policies. Otherwise, a city would have no reasons to learn from other cities with regard to cycling. As discussed in the previous chapter, the city state of Berlin has clear ambitions for the coming years with regard to cycling (Senate for Urban Development and the Environment, 2013). Moreover, learning from best practices in other cities is even mentioned several times as a strategy for improving cycling policies in Berlin. Second, Berlin can be seen as an extreme case, as the degree of involvement of civil initiatives in bicycle policymaking is seen as unique (Von Schneidemesser & Stasiak, 2019). Flyvbjerg (2006) defines an extreme case as an unusual example that is rich in information because of the unique combination of actors and mechanisms that are activated. Indeed, the co-creating nature of bicycle policymaking between the senate, the districts, and civil initiatives (Von Schneidemesser & Stasiak, 2019), especially in relation to the size of the city, makes Berlin an unusual and interesting case to study. Third, from a pragmatical perspective, the sufficient amount of policy documents available in English does contribute to a thorough analysis.
3.2 Data collection
For the data collection, the research strategy provided in Figure 3.1 is used. Primary data is gathered through interviews. Prior to that, a literature review is conducted in order to obtain a greater knowledge about the concept policy transfer, and the benefits and barriers offered by literature. Furthermore, specific information about the cycling policies in Berlin is gathered through a policy analysis. The literature review and the policy analysis are related to each other as the case defines the scope for the literature review (i.e. the focus on city governments and the focus on cycling) and the results of the literature review are applied to the policy analysis (i.e. by applying the policy transfer framework to the context of cycling in Berlin). Both the literature review and the policy analysis served as an input for the interviews, the former one as the structure for the questions and the latter one as contextual background information. The output of the interviews does refer back to the policy analysis to some extent, as the interviews did provide new useful documents or other information sources for the policy analysis. The interviews are the direct input for the results of this research, defined by the policy context and tested against the literature framework.
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Figure 3.1 | Research strategy
3.2.1 Literature review
For the theoretical framework, scientific literature has been reviewed and discussed. The review process was structured by first determining relevant concepts and relevant steps in the policy transfer process, clarified in Appendix II. Next, relevant articles were selected and roughly divided into two groups: first, ‘general’ articles about policy transfer, and second, articles discussing policy transfer within the transport or spatial planning sector. For the general literature about policy transfer, the article of Dolowitz & Marsh (1996) played a key role, albeit on a negative or a positive note. This article and following articles were mainly useful for defining policy transfer and related concepts and for understanding the policy transfer process. Nonetheless, since most of those articles were written from a political science and international relations perspective, they did not offer any specific information about how the policy transfer process within the transport sector would look like. Articles specified on transport or spatial planning consisted mostly of case studies. This group of articles was mainly useful for getting a more specified image of the policy transfer process within the transport sector and identifying the benefits and barriers. All articles were coded based on the codes provided in Appendix II.
3.2.2 Policy analysis
A policy analysis has been conducted in order to gain more insight into the political context of Berlin and the developments with regard to cycling policies. This is especially useful as
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background information for the interviews. The policy analysis consisted of two components.
First, information about the political situation in Berlin was gathered. For this component, most information was gathered through official governmental websites like www.berlin.de.
Also, some scientific articles were useful as they gave a clear explanation of the political context of Berlin (sometimes compared with other cities). Furthermore, websites of civil initiatives or independent organizations were consulted to gain insight into their role within Berlin politics.
Second, policies and strategies with regard to cycling were analysed. This analysis was mainly focused on three documents, as those were the only relevant document that were found. Table 3.1 provides an overview of the documents with a short description.
Name Year Description
New Cycling Strategy for Berlin
2013 The in 2013 established cycling strategy of Berlin. In the document, the goals for the coming years and the means to reach those goals are presented.
Mobility in the City:
Berlin Traffic in Figures
2017 A document in which Berlin’s transport system between 2013 and 2016 is analysed. One chapter is dedicated to cycling.
Berliner
Mobilitätsgesetz
2018 In the Mobility Act, the senate department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Change defined a legal framework for the transport transition. The act has particularly specified the role of the bicycle (which has not been done in the whole of Germany before). The act describes several Berlin-wide measures to focus on the coming years. The implementation of those measures is currently in a starting phase and has to be finished by 2030.
Table 3.1 | Documents used for the policy analysis
3.3.3 Interviews
Semi-structured interviews have been conducted as a manner of primary data gathering. This form of interviewing allows the researcher to have conversations with people, but in a self- conscious and partially structured manner (Longhurst, 2010). This way, the scope of the research stays covered (Flick, 2015). On the other hand, this type of interviewing allows participants to add subjects important to them, that have not been considered by the researcher (Flick, 2015). Moreover, it allows participants to respond freely and extensively and to feel comfortable because of the informal nature (Longhurst, 2010).
For conducting the interviews, a face-to-face method is most appropriate as the researcher is able to observe non-verbal communication and to clarify ambiguities and necessary points in detail (Khan, 2014). Unfortunately, the data collection period did overlap with the outbreak of
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the coronavirus in Europe (from March 2020 onwards). As the researcher got urgently advised not to organize face-to-face meetings, in line with national measures1, the alternative was to conduct interviews through video calling. Advantages of interviewing through video calling are that interviewees can be more flexible in making room in their schedule for an interview (i.e.
interviewees are not restricted to working hours and there is no need to check the availability of a meeting room at the work location) and interviewees can participate in the interview from a comfortable environment as they are restricted to working from home as well (Longhurst, 2010). The implications of the coronavirus on the results of this study are discussed in the reflection of this research (section 7.7).
The interviews can be divided into two types: interviews of explorative nature and interviews with practitioners. The exploratory interviews are conducted to gain more knowledge on the cycling context of Berlin, as an alternative for the lack of personal experience of the researcher, as the planned stay in Berlin got cancelled due to the coronavirus. The interviews with practitioners serve as the main data collection components to answer the research question.
Practitioners are those, who are or were involved in the development or implementation of cycling policies in Berlin. Table 3.2 provides an overview of the interviewees. From now on, interviewees will be referred to by the number provided in the left column of Table 3.2.
Nr. Organization Function Relevance Date
E-1 Technische Universität Berlin
Employee at the Chair of Integrated Transport
Planning
Responsible for cycling related research, mostly focused on Berlin.
16-04- 2020
E-2 Dutch Embassy in Berlin
Mobility and Environment Advisor
Responsible for among others the knowledge exchange of mobility related issues between the Netherlands and Germany.
22-04- 2020
E-3 ADFC Employee of the
Berlin department
Responsible for the
communication of the Berlin department, cycling events and demonstrations.
23-04- 2020
P-1 Changing
Cities/Volksentsch eid Fahrrad
Board member of Changing Cities, the organization behind
Involved in Changing Cities since the bicycle referendum, involved in the negotiations of
01-05- 2020 &
1 For information about the Dutch measures to control the coronavirus, see https://www.government.nl/latest/news/2020/03/23/stricter-measures-to-control-coronavirus.
23 Volksentscheid Fahrrad
the Mobility Act and involved in policy transfers.
03-06- 20202 P-2 Senate Department
for the
Environment, Transport and Climate Change
Employee at the coordination office for cycling
Responsible for the
administrative organizational level – in order to make the administrative process of implementing a cycling strategy faster.
12-05- 2020
P-3 Senate Department
for the
Environment, Transport and Climate Change
Former state secretary of the senate department (2016-2018).
Involved in the negotiations of the Mobility Act. Worked at both the state and the district level.
18-05- 2020
P-4 Senate Department
for the
Environment, Transport and Climate Change
Former head of the transport division at the senate department (2014- 2017).
Responsible for transport strategies; involved in international city networks.
04-06- 2020
P-5 ADFC Scientific
researcher for transport planning
Involved in a project on identifying best practices in cities and researching how it would fit in the German context.
09-06- 2020
Table 3.2 | Overview of interviewees
The coding scheme used for the literature review served as a base for the interview guides.
Besides, questions about the cycling context in Berlin are included. Two interview guides have been used: one for the exploratory interviews and one for the interviews with practitioners.
The two interview guides are provided in Appendix III.
3.3 Data analysis
In order to analyse the interview data, all interviews were recorded. This allows the researcher to focus on the questions and the conversation during the interview. Besides, it made it possible to transcribe the gathered data (Longhorst, 2010). The transcriptions provide insights into the general message of every interview. For the analysis of the data, the software program Atlas.TI was used, where the transcriptions serve as the raw data input. Next, the transcriptions of every
2 A second interview was planned with this interviewee to gain additional information on his involvement in policy transfer.
